The battle between Sprint and T-Mobile for the hearts and phone lines of America's families is heating up. T-Mobile recently updated its Simple Choice family plan to give a family of four unlimited calling and text, as well as 10GB of data to each of them for $120 a month. On Wednesday, Sprint fired back with a revamped Family Share Pack. This package offers four lines, unlimited talk, text and 10GB of shared data for $100 to families that switch from another carrier. And if 10GB isn't enough, Sprint also announced that it will sell a 40GB plan for $20 more per month, $120 in total.

A huge mobile shake-up has just kicked off in Britain. Telefonica has agreed to sell O2 to Hutchison Whampoa, the owner of Three UK, for £10.25 billion. We knew it was likely, after the pair entered "exclusive negotiations" back in January, but now it's essentially a done deal. Provided the purchase is approved by regulators, it means the UK's four major networks will soon become three: Vodafone, EE and the combined might of Three and O2. The confirmation comes by way of Telefonica, although the company is saying little beyond the amount of money involved. For instance, it's unclear if Hutchison Whampoa plans to maintain O2's brand and services in the UK, or merge them entirely with Three.

If you thought filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy was the final chapter in LightSquared's wireless network saga, you'd be wrong. Hedge-fund manager Philip Falcone is back at the FCC's doorstep with yet another proposal, which he hopes might snatch the maligned network from the jaws of GPS interference-related troubles. Two filings placed with the commission apparently outline plans to use its broadband network in a way that it believes won't interfere with GPS signals, along with the 5MHz of spectrum that are known not to cause any issues. Along with the proposed changes, LightSquared is reportedly set to ask for more time to have exclusive rights to propose a reorganization plan. If granted, this could finally mean some progress for the beleaguered project, but with investors worried that money being spent on this could be better-placed back in their pockets, Falcone will have everything crossed, while the FCC deliberates the situation.

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Sun, 30 Sep 2012 05:04:00 -040021|20337120http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/13/huawei-complains-about-spying-allegations/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/13/huawei-complains-about-spying-allegations/http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/13/huawei-complains-about-spying-allegations/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23comments"We must remember always that accusation is not proof." So begins a report sponsored and published by Huawei, heavily quoting a 1954 US Senate report that condemned McCarthy and his anti-Communist hysteria. The document is a prelude to Huawei's forthcoming public testimony to the U.S. House of Representatives' Intelligence Committee, and its message is clear: the Chinese manufacturer is tired of how it's being treated in America, where numerous telecoms contracts have been blocked over "national security concerns." Huawei wants to be seen as an "opportunity" rather than a "threat," claiming it has scope to expand its 140,000 workforce and would love to create more jobs in America -- if only the US government would remove its "roadblock."

Many other arguments are put forward, but some of the most interesting paragraphs deal with the background of Huawei's founder, Ren Zhengfei. The document claims that Zhengfei has been "tragically misunderstood" and that his alleged roles in the People's Liberation Army and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are "unsubstantiated." The report doesn't deny those memberships ever existed, but instead downplays their significance -- for example by insisting that the CCP is now focused on promoting "private entrepreneurs" and "democratization." We admittedly stopped reading at that point, but if you'd like to continue then the full 78-page PDF, written by Dan Steinbock of the India, China and America Institute, is linked below.

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Thu, 13 Sep 2012 08:10:00 -040021|20322606http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/15/sprint-kicks-lightsquared-to-the-curb-as-it-contests-fcc-ruling/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/15/sprint-kicks-lightsquared-to-the-curb-as-it-contests-fcc-ruling/http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/15/sprint-kicks-lightsquared-to-the-curb-as-it-contests-fcc-ruling/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsSometimes when you start heading downhill, it can be hard to stop. Take LightSquared for instance -- not only were its LTE plans repeatedlycontested and eventually shot down, but now Sprint, its long time partner, will indeed be cutting ties with the wireless start-up. According to the Wall Street Journal, the move will officially be announced on Friday, leaving LightSquared alone with its dreams. A representative from the start-up says its filing a 150-page defense of its network on the same day, hoping to refute the Feds' claims that its network interferes with GPS signals. The outfit made no comment on Sprint's plans, but mentioned that it has enough funds to operate on its own for several quarters. We'll let you know when Sprint officially drops the ball.

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Thu, 15 Mar 2012 20:02:00 -040021|20194567http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/05/china-claims-one-billion-mobile-phone-users/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/05/china-claims-one-billion-mobile-phone-users/http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/05/china-claims-one-billion-mobile-phone-users/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsChina claimed 900 million mobile users last April, but back then it still seemed possible that India might reach the billion user milestone first. China was ahead in absolute terms, while India's user base was growing faster. According to the latest figures from its government, however, China is ready to stake its claim. It had 997 million phone owners by late February, with growth of around three million per week, which means it should have tipped the scales in the last few days. Of course, it's not really about who gets there first: The salient fact is that millions more humans can now ring each other up, just, you know, to chat.

LightSquared's encountered many bumps on the road to winning clearance for its LTE network, but it's not ready to throw in the towel just yet. During a conference call today, Jeff Carlisle (Executive Vice President for Regulatory Affairs), Geoff Stearn (Vice President of Spectrum Development) and Ed Thomas (Former FCC Chief Engineer, now a LightSquared consultant) refuted the government's claims that the network interferes with GPS receivers, lambasting the use of "obsolete" devices and other tests that don't "reflect reality." The LightSquared executives went as far as calling the entire process "rigged" and "shrouded in secrecy." In their opinion, the testing was "set up to be a failure," thanks in part to the involvement of GPS manufacturers. Moreover, when questioned about what the next step would be, the company stated that all it'd like are "valid scientific results," the use of non-obsolote devices and a "fair process with proper testing." Needless to say, we can expect the drama to continue over the coming months -- after all, LightSquared is claiming it's got enough money to keep the battle going for at least a few quarters yet.

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Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:46:00 -050021|20151251http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/14/lightsquareds-lte-hopes-dashed-by-federal-agency-report/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/14/lightsquareds-lte-hopes-dashed-by-federal-agency-report/http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/14/lightsquareds-lte-hopes-dashed-by-federal-agency-report/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsWhen it was first mooted that LightSquared's LTE technology might interfere with GPS equipment, the firm was quick to deny it. Since then, the company has tried to mitigate the issue, but the nine agencies making up the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Executive Committee (PNT ExComm) all agreed that the problems are real and any attempts at mitigation are futile. This comes only days after Sprint reneged on a resource sharing deal, issuing a further blow to the company's plans for a terrestrial network. LightSquared's reaction is naturally not a happy one, claiming that the testing process is not only flawed, but that the agencies have a bias in favor of the GPS industry. By our reasoning, this only leaves the stage of depression before final acceptance of the grief-ridden situation.

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Sat, 14 Jan 2012 14:56:00 -050021|20148921http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/02/telecoms-win-immunity-in-wiretapping-case-us-court-approves-sep/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/02/telecoms-win-immunity-in-wiretapping-case-us-court-approves-sep/http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/02/telecoms-win-immunity-in-wiretapping-case-us-court-approves-sep/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsLooks like a case of good news-bad news for the Electronic Frontier Foundation in its fight against warrantless wiretapping. A US appeals court upheld a 2008 ruling, granting telecoms such as AT&T, Verizon and Sprint immunity for cooperating with the government in its surveillance activities. Still, Judge Margaret McKeown of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals insists that immunity only applies to telecoms, not the government, and that "the federal courts remain a forum to consider the constitutionality of the wiretapping scheme and other claims." Indeed, while the 9th Circuit upheld immunity for telecoms, it also gave the go-ahead for a separate suit against the NSA, former president George W. Bush, senior members of the Bush administration and President Obama for using AT&T's network to conduct "an unprecedented suspicionless general search," according to the filing. The court's decision to allow this suit to proceed marks a reversal of an earlier ruling, in which a lower court said the plaintiffs did not have legal standing to pursue the case.